With Scumdogs of the Universe, Gwar gave its followers exactly what they wanted: brutally aggressive guitars, abrasive vocals and gross, perverted lyrics. As twisted as songs like “Maggots,” “Vlad the Impaler,” and “Slaughterama” are, Gwar is never genuinely scary, but rather humorous and goofy. One of the most amusing tracks is the opener, “The Salaminizer,” which finds thrash’s equivalent of Spinal Tap doing a takeoff on N.W.A’s gangsta rap anthem “Gangsta Gangsta.” The whole thing is very tongue-in-cheek, and in fact, Gwar never intended to be anything more than a parody of thrash and death metal. But ironically, some headbangers actually took it seriously and exalted Oderous & Co. as the ultimate thrash band. Outrageously entertaining, Scumdogs is Gwar’s crowning achievement. – Alex Henderson